A large portion of present day Moldovan territory became a province of the Russian Empire in 1812 and then unified with Romania in 1918 in the aftermath of World War I. This territory was then incorporated into the Soviet Union at the close of World War II. Although Moldova has been independent from the Soviet Union since 1991, Russian forces have remained on Moldovan territory east of the Nistru River supporting the breakaway region of Transnistria, whose population is roughly equally composed of ethnic Ukrainians, Russians, and Moldovans.

Years of Communist Party rule in Moldova post-independence ultimately ended with election-related violent protests and a rerun of parliamentary elections in 2009. Since then, a series of pro-European ruling coalitions have governed Moldova. As a result of the country's most recent legislative election in November 2014, the three pro-European parties that entered Parliament won a total of 55 of the body's 101 seats. Infighting among coalition members led to prolonged legislative gridlock and political instability, as well as the collapse of four governments, all ruled by pro-European coalitions centered around the Liberal Democratic Party (PLDM) and the Democratic Party (PDM). A political impasse ended in January 2016 when a new parliamentary majority led by PDM, joined by defectors from the Communists and PLDM, supported PDM member Pavel FILIP as prime minister.

Moldova remains Europe's poorest economy, but has made steps toward expanding its market access by signing and ratifying an Association Agreement with the EU in 2014, which fully entered into force in July 2016 after ratification by all EU member states. Igor DODON won Moldova's first direct presidential election in over 20 years in November 2016.

This is the population pyramid for Moldova. A population pyramid illustrates the age and sex structure of a country's population and may provide insights about political and social stability, as well as economic development. The population is distributed along the horizontal axis, with males shown on the left and females on the right. The male and female populations are broken down into 5-year age groups represented as horizontal bars along the vertical axis, with the youngest age groups at the bottom and the oldest at the top. The shape of the population pyramid gradually evolves over time based on fertility, mortality, and international migration trends.

For additional information, please see the entry for Population pyramid on the Definitions and Notes page under the References tab.

Dependency ratios:

total dependency ratio:34.5(2015 est.)

youth dependency ratio:21.2(2015 est.)

elderly dependency ratio:13.4(2015 est.)

potential support ratio:7.5(2015 est.)

Median age:

total:37 years

male:35.3 years

female:38.9 years(2018 est.)

country comparison to the world:
71

Population growth rate:

-1.06%(2018 est.)

country comparison to the world:
226

Birth rate:

11.2 births/1,000 population(2018 est.)

country comparison to the world:
175

Death rate:

12.6 deaths/1,000 population(2018 est.)

country comparison to the world:
15

Net migration rate:

-9.4 migrant(s)/1,000 population(2017 est.)

country comparison to the world:
211

Population distribution:

pockets of agglomeration exist throughout the country, the largest being in the center of the country around the capital of Chisinau, followed by Tiraspol and Balti

amendments:
proposed by voter petition (at least 200,000 eligible voters), by at least one-third of Parliament members, or by the government; passage requires two-thirds majority vote of Parliament within one year of initial proposal; revisions to constitutional articles on sovereignty, independence, and neutrality require majority vote by referendum; articles on fundamental rights and freedoms cannot be amended; amended several times, last in 2010; note – in early 2016, the Moldovan Constitutional Court decision returned the country to direct presidential elections, reversing a 2000 constitutional amendment that allowed Parliament to select the president
(2016)

Legal system:

civil law system with Germanic law influences; Constitutional Court review of legislative acts

International law organization participation:

has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

Citizenship:

citizenship by birth:
no

citizenship by descent only:
at least one parent must be a citizen of Moldova

dual citizenship recognized:
no

residency requirement for naturalization:
10 years

Suffrage:

18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:

chief of state:
President Igor DODON (since 23 December 2016); note – in 2017-18, DODON was temporarily suspended 4 times by the Moldovan Constitutional Court for rejecting ministerial appointments and for refusing to sign a law; Parliamentary Chairman, Andrian CANDU, has assumed some of the presidential functions

cabinet:
Cabinet proposed by the prime minister-designate, nominated by the president, approved through a vote of confidence in Parliament

elections/appointments:
president directly elected for a 4-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 13 November 2016 (next to be held in fall 2020); prime minister designated by the president upon consultation with Parliament; within 15 days from designation, the prime minister-designate must request a vote of confidence for his/her proposed work program from the Parliament

description:
unicameral Parliament (101 seats; 51 members directly elected in single-seat constituenceis by simple majority vote and 50 members directly elected in a single, nationwide constitutency by closed party-list proportional representation vote; all members serve 4-year terms

elections:
last held on 30 November 2014 (next originally scheduled for late November 2018 but delayed until 24 February 1919 by Parliament)

highest courts:
Supreme Court of Justice (consists of the chief judge, 3 deputy-chief judges, 45 judges, and 7 assistant judges); Constitutional Court (consists of the court president and 6 judges); note - the Constitutional Court is autonomous to the other branches of government; the Court interprets the Constitution and reviews the constitutionality of parliamentary laws and decisions, decrees of the president, and acts of the government

judge selection and term of office:
Supreme Court of Justice judges appointed by the president of the republic upon the recommendation of the Superior Council of Magistracy (an 11-member body of judicial officials); all judges serve 4-year renewable terms; Constitutional Court judges appointed 2 each by Parliament, the Moldovan president, and the Higher Council of Magistracy for 6-year terms; court president elected by other court judges for a 3-year term

represented in Parliament:Communist Party of the Republic of Moldova or PCRM [Vladimir VORONIN]; Democratic Party of Moldova or PDM [Vladimir PLAHOTNIUC]; European People’s Party of Moldova or EPPM [Iurie LEANCA]; Liberal Democratic Party of Moldova or PLDM [Viorel CIBOTARU]; Liberal Party or PL [Mihai GHIMPU]; Socialist Party of the Republic of Moldova or PSRM [Zinaida GRECEANII]; not represented in Parliament, participated in recent elections (2014-2016):Action and Solidarity Party or PAS [Maia SANDU]; Anti-Mafia Movement or MPA [Sergiu MOCANU]; Centrist Union of Moldova or UCM [Mihai PETRACHE]; Christian Democratic People's Party or PPCD [Victor CIOBANU]; Conservative Party or PC [Natalia NIRCA]; Democracy at Home Party or PDA [Vasile COSTIUC]; Democratic Action Party or PAD [Mihai GODEA]; Dignity and Truth Platform or PPDA [Andrei NASTASE]; Ecologist Green Party or PVE [Anatolie PROHNITCHI]; Law and Justice Party or PLD [Nicolae ALEXEI]; "Motherland" Party or PP [Emilian CIOBU]; National Liberal Party or PNL [Vitalia PAVLICENKO]; Our Home Moldova or PCNM [Grigore PETRENCO]; Our Party or PN [Renato USATII]; Party of National Unity [Anatol SALARU]; People’s Party of Moldova or PPRM [Alexandru OLEINIC]; Regions Party of Moldova or PRM [Alexandr KALININ]; Shor Party or PS [Ilan SHOR]; Socialist People’s Party of Moldova or PPSM [Victor STEPANIUC]

three equal vertical bands of Prussian blue (hoist side), chrome yellow, and vermilion red; emblem in center of flag is of a Roman eagle of dark gold (brown) outlined in black with a red beak and talons carrying a yellow cross in its beak and a green olive branch in its right talons and a yellow scepter in its left talons; on its breast is a shield divided horizontally red over blue with a stylized aurochs head, star, rose, and crescent all in black-outlined yellow; based on the color scheme of the flag of Romania - with which Moldova shares a history and culture - but Moldova's blue band is lighter; the reverse of the flag displays a mirrored image of the coat of arms

note: one of only three national flags that differ on their obverse and reverse sides - the others are Paraguay and Saudi Arabia

National symbol(s):

aurochs (a type of wild cattle); national colors: blue, yellow, red

National anthem:

name:
"Limba noastra" (Our Language)

lyrics/music:
Alexei MATEEVICI/Alexandru CRISTEA

note: adopted 1994

Economy :: Moldova

Economy - overview:

Despite recent progress, Moldova remains one of the poorest countries in Europe. With a moderate climate and productive farmland, Moldova's economy relies heavily on its agriculture sector, featuring fruits, vegetables, wine, wheat, and tobacco. Moldova also depends on annual remittances of about $1.2 billion - almost 15% of GDP - from the roughly one million Moldovans working in Europe, Israel, Russia, and elsewhere.

With few natural energy resources, Moldova imports almost all of its energy supplies from Russia and Ukraine. Moldova's dependence on Russian energy is underscored by a more than $6 billion debt to Russian natural gas supplier Gazprom, largely the result of unreimbursed natural gas consumption in the breakaway region of Transnistria. Moldova and Romania inaugurated the Ungheni-Iasi natural gas interconnector project in August 2014. The 43-kilometer pipeline between Moldova and Romania, allows for both the import and export of natural gas. Several technical and regulatory delays kept gas from flowing into Moldova until March 2015. Romanian gas exports to Moldova are largely symbolic. In 2018, Moldova awarded a tender to Romanian Transgaz to construct a pipeline connecting Ungheni to Chisinau, bringing the gas to Moldovan population centers. Moldova also seeks to connect with the European power grid by 2022.

The government's stated goal of EU integration has resulted in some market-oriented progress. Moldova experienced better than expected economic growth in 2017, largely driven by increased consumption, increased revenue from agricultural exports, and improved tax collection. During fall 2014, Moldova signed an Association Agreement and a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement with the EU (AA/DCFTA), connecting Moldovan products to the world’s largest market. The EU AA/DCFTA has contributed to significant growth in Moldova’s exports to the EU. In 2017, the EU purchased over 65% of Moldova’s exports, a major change from 20 years previously when the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) received over 69% of Moldova’s exports. A $1 billion asset-stripping heist of Moldovan banks in late 2014 delivered a significant shock to the economy in 2015; the subsequent bank bailout increased inflationary pressures and contributed to the depreciation of the leu and a minor recession. Moldova’s growth has also been hampered by endemic corruption, which limits business growth and deters foreign investment, and Russian restrictions on imports of Moldova’s agricultural products. The government’s push to restore stability and implement meaningful reform led to the approval in 2016 of a $179 million three-year IMF program focused on improving the banking and fiscal environments, along with additional assistance programs from the EU, World Bank, and Romania. Moldova received two IMF tranches in 2017, totaling over $42.5 million.

state-owned national radio-TV broadcaster operates 1 TV and 1 radio station; a total of nearly 70 terrestrial TV channels and some 50 radio stations are in operation; Russian and Romanian channels also are available
(2017)

National Army: Land Forces Command, Air Forces Command (includes air defense unit); Carabinieri Troops: a component of the Ministry of Internal Affairs that also has official status as a service of the Armed Forces during wartime
(2017)

Military service age and obligation:

18 years of age for compulsory or voluntary military service; male registration required at age 16; 1-year service obligation; note - the ultimate abolition of military conscription has been announced
(2018)

Transnational Issues :: Moldova

Disputes - international:

Moldova and Ukraine operate joint customs posts to monitor the transit of people and commodities through Moldova's break-away Transnistria region, which remains under the auspices of an Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe-mandated peacekeeping mission comprised of Moldovan, Transnistrian, Russian, and Ukrainian troops

Refugees and internally displaced persons:

refugees (country of origin):
6,779 applicants for forms of legal stay other than asylum (Ukraine) (2015)

stateless persons:
4,569 (2017)

Illicit drugs:

limited cultivation of opium poppy and cannabis, mostly for CIS consumption; transshipment point for illicit drugs from Southwest Asia via Central Asia to Russia, Western Europe, and possibly the US; widespread crime and underground economic activity